Raclette was derived from the French “racler” – to scrape and it’s the name of a traditional soft, creamy, Swiss cheese.

Alpine herders driving their cows to mountain pastures warm their cheese on their campfires at night and scrape it off the rocks to spread on their bread. That’s how it all started.

Now, raclette could be a hearty meal in itself – comfort food at its best, or a grill party where both hosts and guests create their own dishes.

Melted raclette cheese can come with marble potatoes, gherkins, pickled onions, prosciuttos and other smoked meats, mushrooms grilled over an electric grill with a stone slab as a hot plate and small individual pans underneath.

Although this may seem very Western, the raclette can even be adopted for local dishes, such as “quesong puti” (white carabao’s milk cheese) and “pan de sal”. Imagination is the limit.

This is especially now that Swissmar, a Swiss-Canadian firm, has brought its gourmet houseware line – raclette grills, fondue pots and kitchen tools – to the country, in partnership with Gourdo’s.

The Swissmar Raclette Party Grill is heated by an electrical element which both cooks the food on the top grill and melts cheese on the trays below.

“It eliminates a lot of preparation stress for the party host and creates an interactive activity where everyone participates in creating personalized dishes,” says Marc Hoffman, Swissmar International Sales Manager.

The top hot plate is made of a stone slab which could be pre-heated for 20 minutes in the oven if you are in a hurry. It’s ideal for grilling meats, sausages, seafood and vegetables.

Chef Jackie advised users to cut the sausages, meats, potatoes, mushrooms and other into bite-sized pieces for easier cooking before putting them in. Don’t overfill the raclette trays or pile ingredients too high to distribute heat evenly.

To prevent the food from sticking, lightly oil the stone slab and sprinkle the surface with a little salt

Melt the cheese in individual raclette pans under the grill top. You can also use these little pans for heating bread slices.

Whip up a simple green salad for starters while the raclette is heating up and finish with a chocolate fondue, like we did.

RACLETTE RECIPES

RACLETTE for 4 persons

400 grams Raclette cheese

optional Black truffle shavings

120 grams Cornichons

120 grams Petite onions

200 grams Marble potatoes with lemon and thyme salt

200 grams Jamon serrano

4 pcs Italian sausage (contemporary raclette)

Olive oil

Raclette alone served best with an Un-Oaked

Young Chardonnay Served with the condiments choose the following wine:

Riesling

Chenin Blanc

Sauvignon Blanc

ASIAN GRILL for 4 persons

For the non stick grill

320 grams Thin beef slices

soy sauce to taste

200 grams Asparagus

Petite onions

200 grams Karakuchi (Spicy dipping sauce for beef)

Amakuchi (Mild dipping sauce for beef)

Procedure:

Drizzle a small amount of soysauce on the beef.

Drizzle a small amount of butter/oil on the grill .

Add a little garlic and the beef. Cook until desired doneness.

Cook the asparagus in the same grill, sprinkle with salt.

Serve with dipping sauces.

For the stone grill

for 4 persons

320 grams Gindara

60 ml Teriyaki marinade

10 ml Ginger juice

4 pc Scallop

Salt and pepper

4 pcs Lemon wedges

Ponzu (dipping sauce for scallop)

Procedure:

Marinade the fish with the teriyaki marinade and the ginger juice.

Season the scallop with a little salt and pepper.

Drizzle a little oil on the stone grill and grill the fish and scallops.

Serve with ponzu sauce and lemon wedges.

Raclette dish

for 4 persons

8 pcs New Zealand mussels

30 ml (2 tbsp.) Light cream

10 grams Hondashi

120 grams Japanese mayonnaise

15 ml (1 tbsp.) Lemon juice

2 tsp Sriracha (or chili garlic sauce)

30 grams (2 tbsp.) Tobiko ( fish roe )

garnish

Green onions

Procedure:

Dissolve the hondashi in the light cream.

Fold in the mayonnaise, lemon juice, sriracha and half the tobiko.

Spoon over the mussels.

Place 2 pcs in each raclette dish and grill until golden in color.

Top with tobiko and green onion.

MEDITERRANEAN GRILL

Grill

500 grams Prawns

500 grams Beef rib eye

4 cloves Garlic, minced

2 tsp Paprika

1/2 tsp Turmeric

1 tsp Cumin

1 tsp Rock salt

1/2 tsp Pepper

1/3 cup Red wine vinegar

1/2 cup Olive oil

1 pc White onion (medium size , cubed)

1 pc White onion (medium size , cubed)

1 pc red pepper

1 pc yellow pepper

12 pcs cherry tomatoes

accompaniments tzatziki

hummus

pita bread

wooden skewers

Procedure:

Mix together the paprika, garlic, turmeric, cumin, salt.

Pepper and red wine vinger, add the olive oil.

Divide the mixture into two .

Marinade the beef and prawns separately. Chill overnight.

Next day, skewer the beef with the onions and cherry tomatoes.

Skewer the shrimp with the peppers.

Grill the beef using the stone grill.

Grill the prawns using the non stick grill.

Place pita bread in the raclette plate and heat the bread.

Serve with tzatsiki and hummus

Accompaniments

Tzatziki

3 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. vinegar

2 cloves garlic, minced finely

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. white pepper

1 cup yogurt, strained

1 cup sour cream

2 cucumbers, peeled, seeded and diced

1 tsp. chopped fresh dill

Hummus

1 16 oz can of chickpeas or garbanzo beans1 tbsp. vinegar

1/4 cup liquid from can of chickpeas

3-5 tablespoons lemon juice (depending on taste)

1 1/2 tablespoons tahini

1/2 cup -3/4 cup roasted red peppers

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons olive oil

CHOCOLATE FONDUE

300 grams Malagos dark chocolate couverture

Vegetable oil

Cacao nibs

8 pcs Marhsmallows

1 pc Apple, sliced into wedges

8 pcs Strawberries

8 pcs Butter cake

2 pc Banana, sliced

lemon juice

(Swissmar products are available at Gourdo’s The Fort, Glorietta 4, Trinoma, Gateway, Promenade Greenhills, Robinson’s Magnolia, Robinson’s Manila, Shangri-La Plaza, Greenbelt 5, Alabang Town Center and the soon-to-open branch in Megamall. Swissmar is also at Living Well branches in The Podium, Mall of Asia, and SM Aura.)